“Where you’ve been lately?
There’s a new kid in town.
Everybody loves him, don’t they?
Now he’s holding her, you’re still around.”-New Kid In Town, The Eagles, 1976
“Some people say, ‘Here is something new,’ but actually it is old, nothing is ever truly new.
We don’t remember what happened in the past. In future generations no one will remember
What we are doing now.” Ecclesiastes 1:10-11, King Solomon, 931 B.C.
One of my all-time favorite songs is the Eagle’s “New Kid in Town.” Besides being such a beautiful song, the message of this 1976 song resonated within me deep in my soul. It still speaks to me in 2021. An online article by The American Songwriter helped me understand better what writers, Glenn Frey and Don Henley, had in mind when they created this popular hit. They said it was “about the fleeting, fickle nature of love and romance. It’s also about the fleeting nature of fame, especially in the music business.” He went on to say, “We were basically saying, ‘Look we know we’re red hot right now but also know that somebody’s going to come along and replace us…”
Fame is an issue that impacts all of us. This doesn’t have to mean “mega fame” as these two rock icons experienced. It can mean any sense of worth, value or “glory” we have received at various times in our lives. If we live long enough and are honest we come to the sobering realization that in this world, no matter what we achieve, we will eventually feel “disposable.” There WILL come a time we will be seen by others and ourselves as a “throw away.” We will ALL experience at some point the feeling of going from “hero to has been.” As I get older, I feel this to be true for myself and my fellow seniors
How does our relationship with God through Jesus Christ change this? To “keep it real,” and be gut-level honest…it doesn’t. Whenever I have felt any kind of personal significance from an achievement, or from a family role, or a job I had, it did not last. At some point the praise of others grew silent but the residue sting of “disposability” remained behind. I was “just another new kid in town.”
But when I have chosen to believe and rely upon how God sees me, rather than the fleeting and faulty perceptions of others, I, with many others, can find a lasting “fame” not with an audience of many but before an audience of ONE. And He has the only opinion that really counts!
From the worldly perspective, our fame (the Bible calls it “glory”) is based upon what we have to KEEP DOING to “not let ‘them’ (whoever they are!) down.” But God’s path to glory for us is to simply keep relying upon HIM and what HE DID on the cross for each of us who have put our trust in Him. This “fame” doesn’t fade over time, depreciate as we age or fade into sadness and loss. “And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you the assurance of sharing His glory.” (Colossians 1:27 NLT)
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for “planting eternity in the human heart” (Ecclesiastes 3:11) that creates a “holy hole” in every human soul. We all know instinctively that worldly popularity, fame or acclaim can never fill this hole. Thank you that you mercifully have filled it when we put our trust in with your Son Jesus.
In His Glorious Name
Amen
Written by Jamie Bohnett. Contact the Author: jamiebohnett@gmail.com